Not Applicable
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to the field of music. More particularly, the present invention relates to a completely integrated total music system allowing users with no music experience to immediately begin playing computerized digital equivalents of any instrument from their computer, transform frequencies and alter the amplitude characteristics of any digital music, combine digital music files with weighted frequency transformed and amplitude modified sound characteristics, and easily compose new music numbers by any of several means including: humming, singing, whistling, typing, manipulating a mouse or pointing device, typing on a standard computer keyboard or by altering previously composed music scores or recorded music files.
2. Description of Prior Art
Previously, there has been no integrated music tool that permits people totally inexperienced in reading music scores and totally inexperienced with how to play any musical instrument to immediately begin: a) playing any music score for any musical number with the computerized equivalent of any classic instrument, b) completely altering sound characteristic of any musical number by transforming frequencies, adjusting amplitudes and combining weighted music files, and c) composing and recording new music numbers by several easy methods.
Relative to the xe2x80x9cInstant Musicianxe2x80x9d aspect of this invention, the playing of classical music instruments has required users to learn how to read music scores and then to translate these scores into particular coordinated body motions that produce the sounds on the particular instrument. And, the classical instrument had to be accessible to the user. Other than a few keyboard instruments, like pianos and organs, most body efforts to produce the desired sounds on different instruments are quite differentxe2x80x94like the difference between trumpets and drums, for example. The process of learning how to play classical music instruments is complicated by the complexity of reading and interpreting music scores for different instruments. The proper reading and interpretation of music scores requires the learning of numerous music symbols including: measures, phrases, octaves, chords, altered chords, melodies, harmonic intervals, staffs, note beat timing numbers, note duration variations, intervals, sharps, flats, fortes, mezzo fortes, slurs, legatos, note rests, and tied notes.
Relative to the xe2x80x9cRecording Artistxe2x80x9d aspect of this invention, apparatus for mixing previously recorded music numbers created from individual instruments, combined instruments or singers are well known, and many devices employ xe2x80x9cequalizersxe2x80x9d to modify sound amplitudes in selected frequency ranges. While equalizers and even more complex computerized versions of these can combine and modify music segments or total performances by attenuating and/or amplifying various components of a music number, they cannot transform sounds of individual instruments, multiple instruments or singers into sounds comprising totally different frequency spectrums containing different or new frequencies so that previously recorded efforts may be transformed into completely different sounds.
Relative to the xe2x80x9cInstant Composerxe2x80x9d aspect of this invention, there are computerized methods for composing new music scores including point and click software that adds notes to blank music scores as well as computer programs drawing on databases of melodies, harmonies and melodic phases to construct new music numbers.
The present xe2x80x9cInstant Musician, Recording Artist and Composerxe2x80x9d invention encompasses a complete integrated music system that enables persons with only basic computer skills and no music background or knowledge to immediately play any music number using the computerized equivalent of any known musical instrument, record and transform their music playing or singing into combined results having completely transformed sounds, and to most easily allow users to compose new music numbers by a variety of most simple means, such as, humming, ad hoc singing or by modifying sample music scores.
According to the xe2x80x9cInstant Musicianxe2x80x9d aspect of the present invention, music scores are presented in such a way on computer screens that anyone with only basic computer skills is instantly capable of playing any musical number producing the computerized equivalent sounds of any musical instrument. All that is required of the user is to select a music number they would like to play, select an instrument sound from a list, and then type the letters designated on the computer screen using a standard computer keyboard. If the song or music number selected begins with the notes e, g, a and b in the first measure, for example, all the user has to do to play the selected music number is to type e, then g, then a, and then b as prompted by the computer screen. This then generates the corresponding musical note sounds of the selected musical instrument whether the instrument sound selected was a piano, trumpet, guitar or other instrument selected. The musical note sounds of the selected instrument are obtained from note sound samples of each musical instrument stored in the computer""s memory apparatus. Music effects represented on conventional sheet music using symbols, such as, sharps, flats fortes, mezzo fortes, ties, slurs and others plus changes in octaves are represented on the screen via additional conventional computer keyboard keys beyond keys A thru G in one octave of music. These additional keys used for these music effects include use of the shift key for capital letters, symbol keys, number keys, tab keys, arrow keys, Alt and Ctrl keys, as well as function keys. This aspect of the invention eliminates the chore of learning how to play various musical instruments and the chore of learning how to read music scores.
According to another aspect of the xe2x80x9cInstant Musicianxe2x80x9d feature of the present invention, places on the instrument selected that correspond to the note to be played are also designated or highlighted. This speeds the process of learning to play conventional musical instruments in a traditional sense if desired. If piano sounds have been selected to be played by the user and the music piece selected to be played starts with a xe2x80x9cgxe2x80x9d note, for example, a piano keyboard image additionally will be shown on the screen with a piano key corresponding to the note xe2x80x9cgxe2x80x9d designated or highlighted. In accordance with still another embodiment of this feature of the present invention, the user may click a computer mouse or other pointing device on the designed place on the instrument depicted on the computer display to produce the sound corresponding to the note to be played.
According to the xe2x80x9cInstant Recording Artistxe2x80x9d aspect of the present invention, users may record, transform musical frequencies and amplitudes, and combine different versions of musical material that have been previously created including music pieces that have been sung. The sound spectrum of individual or combined instruments or human voices are transformed by bending the shape of a frequency spectrum section of the computer display with the movement of a computer mouse or other pointing device. By transforming the frequency spectrum composition of individual elements recorded or combined musical pieces, the user may create sound effects that cannot be rendered by humans or by use of known conventional music instruments. These music creations may be recorded (computer""s drive(s), and/or CDs and/or other recording media) and replayed.
According to the xe2x80x9cInstant Composerxe2x80x9d aspect of the present invention, users without any musical knowledge or skills may easily compose new musical numbers by a variety of means. In accordance with one aspect of the xe2x80x9cInstant Composerxe2x80x9d aspect of this invention, the user may click a computer mouse or other pointing device on a music staff displayed on the computer screen to place a musical note on the staff and create the sound corresponding to the note entered via a musical instrument selected. Various music staffs or scores with various time signatures or various degrees of completenessxe2x80x94including even complete prior recorded music scoresxe2x80x94may be selected initially by the user prior to entering or altering notes. Composing by altering prior music scores is done by either dragging notes from one part of the music staff to another with a mouse or other pointing device, or by deleting and adding notes using computer keyboard keys. To enable users to rapidly assess and change their music number being created as they progress along through staff sections or measures, several music playback options are provided in terms of buttons to click on the screen (Play Back 2 seconds, Play Back 5 seconds . . . , Play Back Whole Number). Like the xe2x80x9cInstant Musicianxe2x80x9d aspect of this invention, users may select or change the musical instrument that sounds when a note is entered on the music staff or when a note is replaced on the staff.
In accordance with another embodiment of the xe2x80x9cInstant Composerxe2x80x9d aspect of this invention, a user may enter sounds into the computer via a microphone that will automatically generate notes in the music staff displayed on the screen. Sounds for composing music may be created by humming, singing, whistling, clapping or by use of any device that creates sounds. The music scores created by any of these means may by altered by adding, deleting or changing the location of notes in scores displayed on the computer display.